I attended. It was dull. Most of my photographs came out blurry. The photos are from me; the video clips are from around the Internet.

UCI police were well-represented. Alan Dershowitz was wrapping up his talk elsewhere in the building, though, so who knows how much security Pipes alone would have attracted.

The head of the UCI College Republicans, the head of the UCI Objectivist Club (Eric Brunner), and Reut Cohen each gave separate preambles. Cohen was introduced as working for the David Project. Another Young Republican then led the attendees (some of them) in the Pledge of Allegiance, “under god” and all.

It’s difficult to make out in this video clip, but students from the Muslim Student Union arrived wearing duct tape over their mouths. On the duct tape gags were written phrases such as “no censorship” and “free speech”. Soon after Pipes started speaking, they stood up, held up signs facing the lectern, and filed out of the room. Since the signs weren’t facing the audience, it was near-impossible to make out any of the slogans.

This cleared out about half of the room. Starting at -0:25 in the clip, notice the unaffiliated undergrads rushing in to grub better seats. Go go Anteater decorum.

The MSU released a statement and a video statement.

This clip is remarkable only for the dueling inanity.

Pipes talked only for about 35 minutes. Chancellor Drake and one of UCI’s communications officials (I think) dropped in for a few minutes, partway through. Pipes then took about 45 minutes in Q&A giving inane answers to mostly-inane student questions. Several students, including Brunner (twice) if I recall correctly, and one of his friends (who slapped him a congratulatory five after one attempt), tried vainly to get Pipes to agree with them that all of Islam, not just militant Islamism, is the enemy.

See also assorted juvenilia from Chuck DeVore and divers hands.

More throughout the day if I run across anything interesting.